Dow Chemical found guilty of urethane foam price-fixing

KANSAS CITY, KAN. -- Dow Chemical Co. has been ordered to pay $400 million after being found guilty of fixing the price of chemicals used to make urethane foams, according to Reuters.

Dow was one of several defendants named in a class-action lawsuit alleging conspiracy to fix chemical prices between 1999 and 2003, at a time when there was excess demand in the industry.

While the other defendants chose to settle, though did not admit any wrongdoing, Dow went to trial in Kansas City in January. The plaintiffs had sought damages for a five-year conspiracy but Dow was not found liable for the full amount of time, Reuters reported a lawyer for the company as saying.

If the $400 million verdict is sustained by the judge overseeing the case, it could be tripled under federal anti-trust law. The company will seek to dismiss the lawsuit in a post-trial motion, Reuters reported.